Sheet



C. T. MAGILL.

FURNACE FOR ANNEALING CONDENSER TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED JAN 8, I919.

Patented I 11110 24, 191%).

4 SHEETSSHEET Iv NA MN.

... III III I II III ll III |.IIII I| ||1|l l I INVENTOR C, T. MAGILL.

FURNACE FOR ANNEALING cowmzwsm TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED SAN. 3. 1919v A Patvm'vd June 2 W12).

4 SHEEIS--SHEET 2' nvvavrog 57 ATTORNEYS Cl Tl FURNACE FOR ANNEALINGCONDENSER TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-8.1919.

Patented J line 24, 1919.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Dn m M N I ATTORNEYS C. T. MAGILL.

- FURNACE FOR ANNEALING CONDENSER TUBES.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-8,1919.

1,307,744. j A Patented June 2- 1919,.

@SHEETS-SHEET 4..

[NJ/EN TOR A ITOR/VEYS emma.

UNITED STATES CHARLES 'rnomasmaarnn,

OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIG-NOR TO BETTE-IL HEM SHIPBUILDING-COBPORA'I'ION, L'IDi, F BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA, A.

COBZPORATION OF DELAWARE.

FURNACE FOR ANNEALING GONDENSER -TUBES.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES THOMAS MA- GILL, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at San Francisco, county of San Francisco, State ofCalifornia, have invented a new and useful Furnace for Annealing Conlidthe condenser tubes to be annealed are fed to the furnace in any desiredmanner, prefer; ably automatically, and pass continuously through thefurnace so that ing operation has been completed.

By such an annealing furnace, thirty or more tubes may be annealed perminute with a consetill quent decrease in operation'ix I With the abovein'view, y invention consists of a noveliwconstructign and arrangementof a furnace foi annealing'condenser tubes wherein provision is made toeffect the continuous travel ofthe tubes through the annealing-furnaceto the cost of the annealing tion.

For the purpose of illustrating my inven- Specification of LettersPatent.

when they are discharged therefrom the requisite anneal construction andarrangement of I simultaneously anneal both ends of the tubes. I alsopreferably through Patented June 24., 1919.

Applicationflled January 8,1919. Serial No. 270,120.

tion, I have shown in the accompanying drawing a typical embodiment ofit which in practice will give satisfactory and reliable results. It is,however, to be understood that this embodiment is typical only and thatthe various instrumentalities of which my invention consists can bevariously arranged and organized, and that my invention is not limitedto the precise arrangement and organization of these instrumentalitiesas herein set forth.

Figure 1 represents a to plan view of a furnace for annealing con ensertubes, em-

bodying my invention.

" Fig. 2 represents a furnace in side elevation,- certa n of the fuelpipesbeing insec' tion.

Fig. 3 represents a front elevation of the furnace. Fig.4 represents, onan enlarged scale, a side elevation of one unit of the furnace andcertain of its adjuncts.

Similar" numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings. In accordance with my present invention, Iemploy two annealing furnace units, each of which is constructed in asimilar manner so that a detailed description of one will suffice forboth. Each unit consists of an annealing furnace 1 which is built up ofplates and angles and consists of a flanged bottom and 4 and a top plate5.

plate 2, side plates 3 A. flanged plate 6 is also employed at one side,of the furnace, and a plate 7 is employed which forms a platform onwhich the ends of the tubes roll. 8 designates the end plates which areslotted or cut out as indicated at 9, in order to provide mouths for theends of the tubes during their travel the furnace. Each oven is mountedon standards 10 which are preferably formed of angle iron and which areprovided with wheels or rollers 11. The plates are secured together inany desired manner and are preferably braced internally by means ofangles 12'. 13 designates the main fuel inlet pipe which communicateswith a pi e 14 which, rnace unit extends longitudinally of a along itsside and is provided with a desired number of upwardly ei ztendingbranches 15 the spaced from each other. Each of these branches 15communicates with a burner 16 which has a steel pin 17 across itsdischarge end. The burner passes through an opening in the front plate4' and discharges'into the annealing chamber 18'- above which an end ofa condenser tube 19 is to be passed. The

ipe 14 is provided with laterally extending branches 20- and .21, andsuch branches of opposite furnace units are connected by a flexiblemetallic hose 22, see Fig. 1. Each furnace is provided at its ends withbearings 23 in which are journaled the shafts 24 on which are mountedsprocket wheels 253. Passing around the sprocket wheels 25 are thesprocket chains '26 which are provided with the upwardly extending lugsor pins 27. which contact with the condenser tubes 19 in order to effecttheir travel through the furnace.

The shafts 24 are mounted in 23 in such a manner that the furnace unitsmay be adjusted relatively to each other as desired. The sprocket wheelsare driven in any desired manner so that the shafts 24 aresimultaneously rotated. In order to illustrate conventionally one mannerof effecting the feed of the sprocketor conveyer chains 26, I have shownone of the shafts 24 as having secured thereto a pulley 25 around whichpasses a belt 26 which passes around a pulley 27 on the drive shaft of amotor 28, see Fig. 3.

'In order to effect a revolution of the tubes during their travelthrough the furnace, I provide means for varying the height at differentplaces of partial or complete I the upper stretch of the conveyor andthis is preferably accomplished by positioning rolls 29, see Fig. 2,beneath the platform forming the travel of the conveyor chains the endsofithe condenser tubes are free to roll on said platform while at othertimes they are raised above the platform and are carried by the conveyerchains above and out of contact with said platform.

The pipes 15 which communicate with the pipes 1a are provided with gatevalves 30 so that any desired branch fuel pipe can be properlycontrolled in accordance with the requirements met with in practice.

The operation of my novel furnace for annealing condenser tubes will nowbe readily apparent to those skilled in this art and is as follows:

The sprocket chains are driven in any desired or conventional manner,and as illustrated, one of the shafts 24 is driven by the motor 28. Thecondenser tubes 19 are fed in any desired manner to the conveyor chains26. Assuming now that the burners 16 are operative and the annealingchamber 18 is being heated thereby, the condenser tubes are fedprogressively through the bearingsplate 7 so that during a portion ofthe annealing chamber so that a large number -of tubes are being anealedat the same time. The rollers 29 are located in such position that atpredetermined intervals the upper stretch of the conveyor chains atpredetermined points will be permitted to sag so that the ends of thecondenser tubes 19 will rest on the platforms 7 and be permitted torevolve. By such construction the ends of the tubes are uniformlyannealed on all sides. As the condenser tubes pass from the annealingfurnace they are automatically discharged from the conveyor formed bythe sprocket chains as will be apparent.

The annealing furnace can be readily adjusted to receive tubes ofdifferent lengths since all that it is necessary to do is to vary thespacing between the furnace units by moving them toward or away fromeach other and it is unnecessary to disconnect the flexible metallichose 22 or to vary the adjustment of the sprocket wheels.

By the employment of my present invention a large number of condensertubes may be properly annealed at a minimum cost, and my invention isespecially applicable to shipyards, and boiler and condenser plants,where it is desired to anneal uniformly and expeditiously the ends oftubes, rods or the like, which can be simultaneously effected by myinvention.

It will be understood by those skilled in that art, that it is desirablein an annealing furnace of this character, that the ends of the articlesto be annealed should be subjected to a continuous and somewhatprolonged heat for the desired period of the annealing operation andthat not only should the heat be positively directed upon the part to beannealed, but it is further desirable that the heating medium employedshould be pro-heated to a certain extent, prior to ignition, in order topromote combustion.

Therefore, in accordance with my present invention, I providelongitudinally extending annealing chambers into which discharge aplurality of burners disposed in spaced relationship along the length ofsuch chambers, and valve controlled branch pipes communicate with saidburners, so that the amount of fuel led to the burners may be regulatedin accordance with the requirements met with in practice.

, It will be apparent from the foregoing, that by arranging theannealing furnaces with their annealing chambers having their mouthswherein the ends of the articles to be annealed are received, juxtaposedor oppositely located to each other, as will be understood from Fig.2,and by arranging continuous longitudinally extending heating chambersbelow the platforms 7 which are provided with a plurality of burnersburner pipes-16, as described within the furnace as will be understoodfrom Figs. 3 and 4, the outside of the furnace is not encumbered orobstructed with piping or holes for the inlet of the heating medium, ashas been the practice with annealing furnaces with which I am familiar.

It will therefore be seen in my invention, owing to the construction ofthe overhanging portions of the furnace and the posi-' tioning of theplatforms 7 with respect to the burner pipes, that a maximum degree ofheat can be continuously applied to the ends of the articles to beannealed, while the latter travel through the furnace, so that when saidarticles have completed their 7 travel through the furnace, they willuponv their exit therefrom "beexpeditiously and effectively annealed totheidesired extent.

I am aware that it has been heretofore proposed to heat the ends ofmetal spokes by the application of a heating medlum thereto at twoopposite holes in the sides of the heating furnace wherein said heatingmedium is injected from the outside of the furnace. Such constructlon,however, is not" capable of attaining results I have obtained bypre-heating the heating medium prior to its discharge into the furnaceand by employing a plurality of burners arranged in succession below theplatform upon which the articles to be annealed are adapted at intervalsto contact with for the purpose described.

It will now be apparent that I have devised a novel and usefulconstruction of a furnace for annealing condenser tubes which embodiesthe features of advantage enumerated as desirable in the statement ofthe invention and the above description, and while I have, in thepresent instance, shown and described a preferred embodiment thereofwhich will give in practice satisfactory and reliable results, it is tobe understood that such embodiment thereof is susceptible ofmodification in various particulars without departing from the spirit orscope of the invention or sacrificing any of its advantages.

Having thus described my invention,

what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is;

1. An annealing furnace, comprising furnace units, each unit having alongitudinally extending annealing chamber, and an open side to receivean end of a tube, means to heat said chambers, a tube conveyer, andmeans cooperating with'said tubes during nace units relativelyadjustable with respect to each other, each unit having an annealingchamber, a platform along said chamber and an open side to permit an endof a tube to ex tend into an annealing chamber, means to heat saidchambers, sprocket chains along the open side of said units and havinglugs to engage the tubes, means to drive said sprocket chain's,and meanscooperating with the upper stretch of said sprocket chains to cause thetubes to be at times out of engagement with said platform and at othertimes to contact with said platform to effect the turning of. said tubesduring their travel through said annealing chamber.

3. An annealing furnace, comprising furnace units spaced apart, eachunit having a longitudinally disposed annealing chamber and an openside, a fuel pipe extending along each unit, branch pipes extending fromsaid fuel pip'e,'burners-for said anneal-" 7 brackets carried by saidunits, shafts jour naled in said brackets, sprocket wheels fixed to saidshafts, and sprocket chains passing ,around said sprocket wheel andhaving means to engage a tube to effect its feed through the annealingfurnace.

4. An annealing furnace of fabricated construction, comprising furnaceunits spaced'apart, each unit having top, bottom, side and end platesconnected together, standards of angle formation supporting each unit,wheels on said standards, each unit having an annealing chamberextending longitudinally through it and an open side to receive an endof a tube, a plurality of burners spaced alongthe inside of the furnaceto heat said annealing chamber, means to feed fuel to said burner, andmeans to move a number of tubes through said fur nace to effect thesimultaneous annealing of both ends of the tubes.

5. An annealing furnace of fabricated construction, comprising furnaceunits spaced apart, each unit consistingof top,bottom, side and endplates connected together and suitably supported, said end plates havingan opening through which the ends of the tubes pass, each unit having anannealing chamber extending longitudinally thereof, and means to feedtubes to cause theirends' to pass through the annealing chambers of saidfurnaces and effect the simultaneous annealing of both ends of thetubes.

6. In an annealing furnace, means for simultaneously annealing the outerends of a tube, rod or the like, and means for automatically rotatingsaid ends at intervals during the annealing operation,

- 7. In a device of the character stated, two annealing furnaces havingoverhanging tops, and open longitudinally extending mouths juxtaposed toeach other for the reception of the ends of the articles to be annealed,platforms extending'inwardly from the annealing chamber of each furnace,means for-propelling the ends of the articles to be annealed throughsaid annealing chambers, and means for causing the endsof said articlesto contact with said platforms at intervals, so as to beautomaticallyrotated during the annealing operation.

h 8. In a device of the character stated, two annealing furnaces havingoverhanging tops, and annealingchanrbers having open inwardly extendinglongitudinal V mouths, juxtaposed to each other for the reception of theends of the articles to be annealed, platv forms, inwardly extendingfrom said annealing chambers forming the bottom of said mouths, passagesbelow said mouths leading to said annealing chambers, and inlet pipesfor the heating medium having upright members located within thefurnaces during the annealing operation.

CHAS. THOMAS MAGILL.

' -Witnesses MAURICE ASHER, A. W. STIDSTON.

